Our interfaces have lost their senses
Our interfaces have lost their senses
Think about how you experience the world—
you touch, you hear, you move.
But our digital world has been getting flatter, more muted.
Reduced to text under glass screens.
This shift made interfaces simpler.<br>But was that really the goal?
An interface is the bridge between
the human
the machine.
It's how we tell computers what we want,
and it's how computers communicate back to us.
The shape should fit how we work,<br>for ergonomics and ease of use
and it should fit how the computer works.<br>for simplicity and a good mental model
Recently, we've been too focused on fitting to the computer's shape, and not enough to our own bodies.
The Great Flattening
Computers used to be physical beasts.
We programmed them by punching cards, plugging in wires, and flipping switches. Programmers walked among banks of switches and cables, physically choreographing their logic. Being on a computer used to be a full-body experience.
Then came terminals and command lines. Physical knobs turned into typed commands—more powerful,<br>but our digital world became less embodied.
Then came terminals and command lines. Physical knobs turned into typed commands—more powerful,<br>but our digital world became less embodied.
Then came terminals and command lines. Physical knobs turned into typed commands—more powerful,<br>but our digital world became less embodied.
Then came terminals and command lines. Physical knobs turned into typed commands—more powerful,<br>but our digital world became less embodied.
Then came terminals and command lines. Physical knobs turned into typed commands—more powerful,<br>but our digital world became less embodied.
Then came terminals and command lines. Physical knobs turned into typed commands—more powerful,<br>but our digital world became less embodied.
We brought back some of the tactile controls with GUIs—graphical user interfaces. We skeumorphed<br>the heck out of our screens, with digital switches, flat sliders, and folder<br>icons. But we kept some of the the functionality in the physical world, with slots to stick disks into<br>and big ol' power buttons.
We brought back some of the tactile controls with GUIs—graphical user interfaces. We skeumorphed<br>the heck out of our screens, with digital switches, flat sliders, and folder<br>icons. But we kept some of the the functionality in the physical world, with slots to stick disks into<br>and big ol' power buttons.
We brought back some of the tactile controls with GUIs—graphical user interfaces. We skeumorphed<br>the heck out of our screens, with digital switches, flat sliders, and folder<br>icons. But we kept some of the the functionality in the physical world, with slots to stick disks into<br>and big ol' power buttons.
We brought back some of the tactile controls with GUIs—graphical user interfaces. We skeumorphed<br>the heck out of our screens, with digital switches, flat sliders, and folder<br>icons. But we kept some of the the functionality in the physical world, with slots to stick disks into<br>and big ol' power buttons.
We brought back some of the tactile controls with GUIs—graphical user interfaces. We skeumorphed<br>the heck out of our screens, with digital switches, flat sliders, and folder<br>icons. But we kept some of the the functionality in the physical world, with slots to stick disks into<br>and big ol' power buttons.
We brought back some of the tactile controls with GUIs—graphical user interfaces. We skeumorphed<br>the heck out of our screens, with digital switches, flat sliders, and folder<br>icons. But we kept some of the the functionality in the physical world, with slots to stick disks into<br>and big ol' power buttons.
Then came touchscreens.<br>What a beautiful thing! We get to<br>poke things directly!<br>But now we live in an flat land, with everything behind a glass display case.
Then came touchscreens.<br>What a beautiful thing! We get to<br>poke things directly!<br>But now we live in an flat land, with everything behind a glass display case.
Then came touchscreens.<br>What a beautiful thing! We get to<br>poke things directly!<br>But now we live in an flat land, with everything behind a glass display case.
Then came touchscreens.<br>What a beautiful thing! We get to<br>poke things directly!<br>But now we live in an flat land, with everything behind a glass display case.
Then came touchscreens.<br>What a beautiful thing! We get to<br>poke things directly!<br>But now we live in an flat land, with everything behind a glass display case.
Then came touchscreens.<br>What a beautiful thing! We get to<br>poke things directly!<br>But now we live in an flat land, with everything behind a glass display case.
With increasing amounts of AI chatbots, we're losing even more: texture, color, shape.<br>Instead<br>of interactive controls, we have a text input.<br>Want to edit an image? Type a command.<br>Adjust a setting? Type into a text box.<br>Learn something? Read another block of text.
With increasing amounts of AI chatbots, we're losing even more: texture, color,...